What do I need to know about COVID-19?
This week I think we can’t avoid spending some time thinking about the number one item all over the news – Coronavirus, or COVID-19. Over the week there has been lot of scaremongering in the media. Because of that it’s hard to avoid worrying.
What is COVID-19?
Coronaviruses are not new, but COVID-19 is a new type of coronavirus. At the start of 2020, COVID-19 was discovered to be the cause of an outbreak of pneumonia in Wuhan province in China.
Because COVID-19 is a new disease there’s a lot we don’t know about it at the moment. It causes a respiratory illness that is mild in the vast majority of cases, but can also be very severe. As with the flu virus and other similar conditions people who are at risk of more severe illness are older people, those with long term medical conditions or weak immune systems.
What are the symptoms?
Symptoms are a fever, cough and problems with shortness of breath. But that’s not to say everyone with these symptoms has COVID-19. It’s still very rare in the UK and there are lots of other common viruses that cause identical symptoms.
We don’t yet know exactly how COVID-19 is spread but similar viruses are spread by droplets in coughs and sneezes.
What can I do to reduce my risk?
What we absolutely shouldn’t do is panic. We know most people who get infected will be completely fine. What we should do is take care of ourselves and our loved ones by using common sense hygiene.
- Try not to touch your eyes, nose and mouth.
- Good hand hygiene – wash hands with soap and water or alcohol gel before eating and drinking, after coughing and sneezing and going to the toilet.
- Avoid contact with people with a respiratory illness, or using their personal possessions, like their mobile phones.
- Cover your nose and mouth when coughing and sneezing with disposable tissues, and put them in the nearest waste bin after using them.
- Stop smoking.
If you have eczema or sensitive skin you may find your hands get sore and dry from hand-washing or your eczema flares up. Soap substitutes and moisturisers will both help.
If someone has sneezed or coughed on a surface you can’t catch COVID-19 by touching the surface. You would have to touch the surface and then touch your face. Hence the advice to avoid touching your face, and make sure you wash your hands frequently, especially before eating.
What about travelling?
You are at higher risk if you’ve travelled to one of the high risk areas recently, or if you’ve been in close contact with someone with the virus.
There are several “high risk” areas where there have been higher levels of the virus. They are described as category 1 or category 2. The category 1 areas are Wuhan province in China, various towns in the north of Italy, some regions of South Korea and Iran.
What should I do if I’m at high risk from travelling?
People who have travelled to category 1 areas are currently being asked to self-isolate at home for 14 days after their return. They should phone their GP or NHS 24/111 if they develop symptoms. If you have travelled to a category 2 risk area you don’t need to self-isolate unless you develop symptoms within 14 days. Again, in that situation you should contact medical services.
All contact with medical services should be by phone in the first instance. They can then advise you how to go about getting tested if necessary.
Self-isolation means staying at home, not going to work or public places and avoiding public transport. Additionally there’s a lot more information about the details of self-isolation on the nhs.inform website.
The guidelines may change over the coming weeks, as this is a rapidly changing situation so keep an eye on the information from NHS inform. The website and the helpline details are below along with other useful information.
Have a look at our many articles on keeping yourself generally healthy and well, the list of blog posts are at the bottom of this page:
